Are You Afraid of the Dark? – Yveltal in Expanded

Normally my articles will give a brief rundown of the Expanded format before diving in, but I already wrote down my thoughts on the format here. In this article I’m going to discuss my most tested deck for the Philadelphia Regionals and give a thorough breakdown of how to pilot it to success. Let’s get started!

Yveltal has been a dominant deck in the Expanded format for years. While powerful, its engine is packed with cards that offer numerous routes to victory and a hefty amount of decision making that inexperienced players may find overwhelming to play. This article should help you feel a bit more at ease as I’ll go into detail on a few turns where you may be confused on how to progress your gamestate. I’m going to provide a skeleton list I believe you should consider using as your template for Philadelphia Regionals. Most importantly, (and with heavy detail) I’ll discuss the tech options you can consider for the tournament and which combo’s work best against each deck. I’ll post a few lists I’m considering playing and how to approach its common meta matchups. Finally, I’ll finish with some common combos and mistakes I see players making with Yveltal which could make or break their tournament.

Darkrai-EX – Dark Cloak gives the every attacker in the deck free retreat which allows pilots to manipulate their Dark Patch attachments with ease. It has a solid attack in Night Spear that pokes 30 bench damage which could make for some cute numbers with Yveltal BKT’s Pitch Black Spear or Shaymin-EX’s Sky Return.

Yveltal-EX – Yveltal-EX is seen as one of the main attackers in its deck and usually it’s going to attack with Y Cyclone to load up other attackers. Evil Ball is a nice deterrent for decks that need to put 3 or more energy on their attacker so I find myself using it less and less in the Expanded format but it’s great to have.

Yveltal BKT – The most recent attacker added to the deck, Yveltal BKT offers an absurd amount of bench poke damage with a 1 Prize Pokémon. Its ability Fright Night is mainly used as a means control Fighting Fury Belt and Float Stone allowing Yveltal players to forgo playing Tool Scrapper or Startling Megaphone.

2 Lysandre – In order to utilize Yveltal BKT’s Fright Night ability in the most efficient way, we’ll need to play 2 Lysandre to bring up non-attacking Pokémon from the bench. This buys us a few turns to stack on damage with Pitch Black Spear and run away with the game if it sticks. Playing only 1 Lysandre and prizing it slows down the pace and progression of the deck in an awful way.

Tech Options

The toughest thing about building Yveltal lists is deciding the tech you want to include as there’s a ton of space available in the deck. The deck has a lot of 50/50 matchups in the current metagame which you need to account for so it is critical you pick the proper tech for the meta you’re expecting. This intensive decision making is why I’m going to provide you 3 different lists I’m testing for Philadelphia as I’m still unsure of which one I’m going to end up piloting. Let’s get into the tech!

Pokémon

Yveltal XY – Yveltal XY was once the go-to opening card for Yveltal list. It served as a way to build up your Yveltal-EX or Darkrai-EX on the bench through Oblivion Wing and Battle Compressor. Last year, it was an ideal attacker to have due to its energy efficient way of hitting Night Marchers for OHKOs which was “the deck to beat” at the time. It’s slowly lost its place in this metagame as decks were able to hit harder and quicker meaning its low damage output just put you behind in prize trades. If you’re considering playing it now, it’s probably included for the Sabeleye/Garbodor and Seismitoad-EX matchups as a way to refuel lost energy from Crushing Hammer.

Sabeleye DEX – Junk Hunt is an absurd attack that allows players to make up for unfortunate discards with Professor Sycamore or refuel Dark Patch in the late stages of a close game. Most players have removed Sabeleye from their lists and started taking a much more aggressive approach with their builds looking to apply pressure with Yveltal BKT instead of Junk Hunting for more resources. Sabeleye is also held by the inclusion of Ghetsis in most of the meta and can be seen as an easy card to counter since Ghetsis can be refueled through VS Seeker. Sabeleye should be included in Yveltal lists that play other tech items such as Enhanced Hammer or Startling Megaphone in order to oppress an oppponent’s gamestate.

Gallade BKT/Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick – Paired with Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick, Gallade BKT becomes one of the deck’s best attackers and an ideal counter to Yveltal’s main weakness, M Manectric-EX. Alongside controlling M Manectric-EX, Gallade plays a key role in the mirror match as a way to quickly KO Darkrai-EX and only being revenged KO’d by a heavily energy dedicated Yveltal-EX. Since most Yveltal lists are swinging towards a heavy count of Yveltal BKT, Gallade is ideal to bring out against them as he is unaffected by their bench poke through Pitch Black Spear. To follow up with being a solid and efficient attacker, Gallade’s Premonition ability offers an absurd advantage as it allows pilots to manage their late game draws to adapt to their given gamestate. The hardest thing about playing Gallade in your deck is finding a way to properly empty your hand to play Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick and remembering to use Premonition each turn you have him out.

Archeops NVI/Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick – Archeops is one of the most opppressive cards in the Expanded format as it gives this already strong deck a way to control evolutions. It serves no other purpose than to keep Trevenant, Accelgor, Greninja BREAK, Vileplume, Flareon/Vespiquen, and Garbodor from coming into play.

2 Darkrai-EX LTR – Playing 2 Darkrai-EX is certainly an option to maintain Dark Cloak consistentcy. Playing against a meta full of item lock and Yveltal Fright Night may warrant the inclusion of 2 to compensate for the 1st being knocked out or your only Darkrai-EX being prized.

Darkrai-EX BKP – Darkrai-EX’s Dark Pulse adds a beefy attacker to the deck with the cost of a Double Colorless Energy. Since the deck only plays 7 Darkness energy, Dark Pulse is usually used as a way to clean up or be the initial strike for a potential 2HKO off Y Cyclone and Pitch Black Spear. His resistance to Psychic used to be a key role in beating Night March, but since the release of Karen we shouldn’t expect much of that deck or any Psychic Pokémon attackers for the most part.

Umbreon-EX BKP – Umbreon-EX is played with the intention of using him to surprise KO M Rayquaza-EX, M Manectric-EX, or M Mewtwo-EX with End Game. This is easily loaded up with Dark Patch and Double Colorless Energy so including him in a deck means the player is expecting a ton of Mega decks to appear. His first attack, Veil of Darkness, is a nice bailout to having a dead hand but for the most part you don’t want him in play without intending to use End Game.

Keldeo-EX LTR – Keldeo-EX is a great addition to the deck when paired with Darkrai-EX’s Dark Cloak. It’s generally used as a way to attach to your active Pokémon with Dark Patch while attacking with it in the same turn. Keldeo-EX has been cut from a majority of the latest lists as less decks are playing Hypnotoxic Laser and players just find ways to manage their damage output and energy attachments better with Dark Patch.

Seismitoad-EX FFI – Seismitoad-EX is one of the best attackers in the format since it puts an item lock on your opponent that can only be removed through Pokémon Ranger. He was included in the old Yveltal lists with the intention of Quaking Punching Night March decks into submission or controlling an opponent’s late game win condition such like VS Seeker. Since the meta has shifted towards Yveltal BKT bench poking Pokémon-EX and other decks have turn 1 KO’s for 180+ damage, he’s seen less and less play in Yveltal lists. I wouldn’t expect many Yveltal players to include this card, but if it is, it’s usually paired with Hypnotoxic Laser or some form of item to boost its damage output.

3 Yveltal BKT – I included 2 Yveltal BKT in my list as I see 3 Yveltal BKT as being a bit excessive in the current meta. Yveltal BKT is now expected and anticipated, with anticipation comes counters and counter-play. Most top players have adapted their lists to compensate for heavy use of Yveltal BKT either through Mr.Mime, Parallel City, or Silent Lab so he’s less powerful than he was before. Playing 3 seems over the top for me, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s at 3 in many Yveltal players list as he is viewed as an amazing card.

Trainers

Enhanced Hammer – Enhanced Hammer is a nice inclusion in the Expanded format to control opposing Double Colorless Energy or Flash Energy on M Manectric-EX. I find it’s more useful when paired with Sabeleye as you’re able to recycle it throughout the game. This isn’t too helpful against Seismitoad-EX variants so playing Xerosic over this card isn’t an awful decision.

Hypnotoxic Laser – Hypnotoxic Laser provides extra damage for your attackers and allows you to be a bit more creative with your attacks and damage output. Since Yveltal BKT and Darkrai-EX can poke the bench for damage, Hypnotoxic Laser finds routes to taking 3 or more prizes off a single attack. Usually this is paired with Virbank City Gym but it’s not necessary for the stadium to be included.

Startling Megaphone – As mentioned before, Yveltal BKT’s Fright Night is the main source of Tool Control for Yveltal decks. Some issues you may run into is the Tools may need to be removed or negated while Fright Night is not active or a Silent Lab may be in play negating his ability. This allows Fighting Fury Belts to keep an opposing attacker alive for 1 more turn or give an opponent the freedom to use Float Stone when necessary. Startling Megaphone can become the way to punish an over extension of your opponent’s tools or the route to finding new KO’s from Fighting Fury Belt without needing Fright Night. I wouldn’t expect to see many Yveltal lists play it.

Fighting Fury Belt – Fighting Fury Belt has become the go-to Tool card in Yveltal lists as it makes Yveltal-EX and Darkrai-EX tankier than it would with Muscle Band. However, its inclusion limits the damage output the deck had when running Muscle Band. Y Cyclone with a Fighting Fury Belt does not KO a Shaymin-EX the same way Muscle Band did and Fighting Fury Belt has no effect when it is attached to Gallade BKT. I expect most lists to playing at least 2 copies of Fighting Fury Belt but I’m not sure if it’s the sure fire choice. This is the main reason I left it out of the skeleton.

Muscle Band – Before the release of Fighting Fury Belt, almost every Yveltal list played 2 copies of Muscle Band. It gives higher damage output for Gallade BKT, Yveltal-EX, and Darkrai-EX but doesn’t offer them any HP. I think Muscle Band would be a nice fit into the deck as it can create scenarios for your attackers to take KOs against Shaymin-EX.

Pokémon Center Lady – This hasn’t been seen in many Yveltal lists but it may see play now due to its ability to control the bench poke from opposing Pitch Black Spear. Many decks in the meta just OHKO most of the attackers in this game so it’s not necessarily strong against a majority of the field. I think it offers intricate ways to deal with slow paced decks or decks that need a status effect to stick like Hypnotoxic Laser or Accelgor’s Deck and Cover. A few Yveltal lists may start including this to solidify these grindy matchups.

Ghetsis – One of the strongest supporters in the Expanded meta, Ghetsis can completely swing a game on turn 1. In combination with Battle Compressor + VS Seeker or Jirachi-EX, Ghetsis is consistent and toxic for playing in the Expanded format. Many of the decks in the meta need to run a heavy item count to support its consistency and speed which is all punished by this card and can be used before they even get a turn. I think most decks should be running 1 copy of Ghetsis but it isn’t completely necessary to see success.

Xerosic – Similar to the control benefits that Startling Megaphone and Enhanced Hammer offer, Xerosic is able to perform both of their jobs in 1 card and with a supporter. This is ideal for players who want to take a slower controlled pace with Yveltal BKT and want a solid way to remove the Special Energy against Seismitoad-EX variants.

Delinquent – Delinquent offers a way for this deck to control Silent Lab without having to replace it with a secondary stadium or wait for an opponent to knock it away. This comes in handy when your own Fright Night or Dark Cloak needs to be online in order to make a game changing play. Sometimes throughout a major tournament players tend to forget that Delinquent exists and they play their hand down to 3 or less cards and can easily lose the game off of a Battle Compressor > Delinquent > VS Seeker + Delinquent play. I don’t expect many Yveltal lists to play a copy.

Stadiums

Silent Lab – Generally accepted as the best opening turn stadium, Silent Lab helps control a majority of the decks that have strong matchups against Yveltal. When paired with Ghetsis on turn 1, the chances of your opponent drawing out to a dead hand are slim to none. Its control of Shaymin-EX, Hoopa-EX, and Jirachi-EX is incredibly disruptive to the format and at times forces instant scoops from opponents. While Silent Lab shuts off your own abilities like Dark Cloak, Fright Night, and Rush In, you’ll want to use it at a point in time when have complete control of the board state it seals away your opponent’s chances of making a comeback.

Reverse Valley – Reverse Valley offers to the deck damage that it reached with Muscle Band in the past. In combination with Fighting Fury Belt, Reverse Valley can create the OHKO or 2HKOs that this deck seeks against Shaymin-EX or opposing Yveltal BKT decks. The problem with playing Reverse Valley is there’s a high chance it is getting replaced the following turn and offers no more utility outside of the initial attack you’re able to get when you play it. If you anticipate playing the mirror match a lot then playing a copy of Reverse Valley would be great.

Virbank City Gym – Play Virbank City Gym if you play Hypnotoxic Laser and want to have the extra damage output to support your 2HKOs. Is it completely necessary when playing Hypnotoxic Laser? No, but it’s nice to have to make up for numbers against Non-EX attackers.

Parallel City – Parallel City is the stadium I expect almost every Yveltal list to play. It helps Yveltal lists combat Mega Rayquaza and Rainbow Road which is generally viewed as their worst matchups in the meta. It also helps against the mirror match as players are able to limit as opposing Yveltal’s bench leading them to lose valuable utility through Dark Cloak, a backup attacker, or Rush In.

Lists

The Standard

This is what I believe most Yveltal lists will look like. Highly based on Treynor Wolfe’s winning list from Wisconsin Regionals last year, this deck will see an immense amount of hype due to its victory and the fact that it was played on stream. This means newer or less experienced Yveltal players are able to watch how this deck was piloted online and are influenced to play this version knowing the strategies is uses handle most of the threats in the meta.

Mr.Mime – Mr.Mime was included to help combat the bench poke damage from other Yveltal BKT’s. It also helps a bit in the matchup against Darkrai-EX as there are times when Gallade hits an Yveltal for 110 damage then you can Lysandre a different Pokémon active and kill the damaged Yveltal with a Night Spear.

Mewtwo-EX – Playing off the concept that your opponent has a strong start and is able to establish Gallade BKT before you can Ghetsis them, this list plays a copy of Mewtwo-EX to OHKO Gallade once its active with a Double Colorless Energy. Mewtwo-EX serves as a solid 1 energy attachment attacker which can clutch out games against Seismitoad-EX when the item lock is preventing you from establishing an Yveltal-EX.

2 Parallel City/ 2 Silent Lab – With M Rayquaza-EX and Rainbow Road being hyped for Philly Regionals, it’s ideal to include 2 copies of Parallel City to contain their OHKO potential. Silent Lab is included here along with Ghetsis to get that absurd turn 1 control combo as well as shutting off Yveltal BKT when necessary.

Pros:

The deck has tons of answers for the mirror match in Silent Lab, Mr.Mime, and Mewtwo-EX

3 Juniper, 2 N, 1 Colress, 1 Shaymin-EX, and 1 Jirachi-EX is a sufficient amount of support that helps push the consistency of the deck throughout a major tournament.

3 Yveltal BKT means you’re going to open it more often than not and you’re dedicating your deck to heavily hate on benched Pokémon-EX. More Pokémon-EX decks should pop up after the release of Karen and a decline in Night March play.

2 Fighting Fury Belt makes Yveltal-EX and Darkrai-EX quite tanky in the matchups where they’re critical towards success. When combined with Parallel City against M Rayquaza-EX and Rainbow Road, you’re forcing your opponent to 3HKO one of these attackers instead of a 2HKO which makes or breaks prize trades.

Cons:

1 Float Stone and 1 Keldeo-EX makes retreating while you have Silent Lab in play to be a hassle.

Lower damage output if Yveltal BKT is not relevant in the matchup.

Highly susceptible to Energy denial as there is no Yveltal XY to recoup energy through attacks.

No efficient way to OHKO a fresh Shaymin-EX on the bench without using Gallade BKT or over dedicating to a Yveltal-EX Evil Ball.

Double Maxie’s Yveltal

With Greninja BREAK winning Arizona Regionals, Archeops NVI may be more necessary than ever to see success at Philadelphia. Gallade BKT is also one of the strongest attackers in the mirror match so with both of these concepts in mind, Why not try to force turn 1 Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick as much as possible? This list can do that consistently.

2 Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick/2 Gallade BKT/1 Archeops NVI – This one is fairly obvious but the inclusion of these cards are just to make sure you get to establish at least 1 Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick a game. There will opportunities where you can establish 2 in a single game and that’s great but the main idea is just to ensure we didn’t prize cards that completely swing a matchup.

2 Darkrai-EX – Playing with the concept that you’re going to be establishing Gallade more often you’re going to need to Dark Cloak and have Gallade attack ASAP. 2 Darkrai-EX were included in the list to ensure I don’t prize my only copy.

1 Fighting Fury Belt/ 1 Muscle Band – This split on Belt and Band is one of my favorite choices for this list. Often times I find myself wanting to get a Muscle on Gallade BKT then using him to sweep any opposing Yveltal BKT with a Silent Lab in play. The numbers from Muscle Band also help support Darkrai-EX to OHKO on a Shaymin-EX which is critical in tough match ups like Rainbow Road and M Rayquaza-EX.

2 Parallel City/ 1 Silent Lab – We want to keep the stadium count a little bit lower here so we don’t clog our Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick but I like playing at least 1 out to an early Parallel City played against me. Having your benched limited to 3 can cause issues for this deck throughout the mid game so it’s best to include a single copy of Silent Lab here.

Pros:

Increased odds of hitting Maxie’s in critical matchups

No Keldeo allows your bench to be less cluttered and controlled by Lysandre/Fright Night

2 Darkrai-EX enables Dark Cloak to be available to you even after one is KO’d.

Cons:

With such a heavy dependence on Item cards this list is incredibly susceptible to turn 1 Ghetsis but honestly which deck isn’t?

No Keldeo-EX means less utility to remove Hypnotoxic Laser in the Seismitoad-EX matchup.

Vulnerable to a Mewtwo-EX if they have a Mr.Mime established on the bench.

LaserBank Yveltal

Hypnotoxic Laser has seen less and less play in Yveltal lists over the past months as players believe it is no longer needed to win now that we have Yveltal BKT available. Players have also opted to use Silent Lab and Parallel City which has led to a bit of success. This means using Virbank City Gym as one of their primary stadium replaces the control factor they crave to have with the previous two. I believe the LaserBank version of Yveltal may be the key to putting this deck back into its dominant position once again. The damage output you gain from Hypnotoxic Laser and Virbank City Gym can swing some of the more popular decks around the meta. Coupled with the damage output, its ability to stick a sleep flip on your opponent may end up winning you a couple of games throughout such a long tournament. Let’s check out my latest list.

Yveltal XY – When paired with Muscle Band, Hypnotoxic Laser, and Virbank City Gym, Yveltal XY’s Oblivion Wing becomes an intense threat against decks that are looking to 2HKO. This combination against any opposing 170 HP Pokémon-EX will stack 110 damage on it going into your turn (should it remain active and Virbank City Gym stay in play) setting up for perfect Pitch Black Spear numbers.

3 Hypnotoxic Laser / 1 Virbank City Gym – While Hypnotoxic Laser hitting for 30 damage is a huge plus, you still get plenty of utility out of the 10 poison damage you’ll be dealing without it. I didn’t want to play 4 copies of Hypnotoxic Laser as it isn’t vital towards winning the game and may end up clogging my hand for a potential Maxie’s Hidden Ball trick play should I end up putting the opponent to sleep. 1 Virbank City Gym is included to support the 3 Lasers and have a way to remove any Silent Lab in play that may be holding back my Dark Cloak or Fright Night.

Pros:

Numbers advantage in the mirror match

Sabeleye/Garbodor is an easier matchup to handle with Hypnotoxic Laser and Yveltal XY

The surprise factor of having Hypnotoxic Laser when most players have removed them from the list.

Easier ways to stack damage against Mega Decks

Cons:

Vulnerability to having more dead cards against Item lock decks

Little room for 1-of tech as Hypnotoxic Laser takes up much of your space

Matchup Mindsets:

Mirror 50/50

The Yveltal mirror match is highly dependent upon which player goes first. Ghetsis can effectively completely swing a game for a player if they’re able to get it on turn 1. Should this not happen, the next big step toward success in the mirror match is establishing your steady line of efficient attackers. Gallade is not only unaffected by one of the best attacks in the mirror, Pitch Black Spear, but it is the single best way to OHKO your opponent’s Darkrai-EX and Shaymin-EX. Since Gallade only takes a Double Colorless Energy to attack, it takes a heavily energy dedicated Yveltal-EX to take an OHKO on him. While Gallade might not be able to OHKO the Yveltal-EX, hitting it for 110 sets it up for perfect numbers off of a Pitch Black Spear from an Yveltal BKT.

Yveltal BKT has since been the 2nd best attacker in the mirror outside of Gallade as many times players are forced bench a Pokémon-EX in order to keep up the pace with their opponent. This is one of the reasons why Mr.Mime can swing the mirror match so heavily as players would be able to bench their Yveltal-EX early against Yveltal BKT without fear. While Mr.Mime is strong, the presence of Silent Lab makes it a risky card to play as you may never get the full value from him since the damage from a single Pitch Black Spear may be all your opponent needs to take their proper 2HKOS.

This may seem like Yveltal-EX isn’t ideal to use in the mirror match, but Yveltal-EX is able to handle Yveltal BKT with ease through Evil Ball if both Pokémon have a Dark Energy and Double Colorless Energy attached. I would say he’s the 3rd best attacker in the matchup should neither deck be using Yveltal XY. I tend to use Yveltal-EX’s Y Cyclone more in the mirror match in order to my conserve energy on board. Doing this gives me a solid option to use AZ on my Yveltal-E before my opponent can take a 2HKO on it and effectively negate their past turns damage output. I mentioned Yveltal XY being the 3rd best attackers the mirror match earlier and I want to explain why. Yveltal XY’s Oblivion Wing is able to setup 2HKO numbers against Yveltal BKT and Gallade if combined with Hypnotoxic Laser, Muscle Band, or Fighting Fury Belt (You’d need Silent Lab against the Yveltal BKT). It also charges a potential Yveltal BKT on the bench without needing to burn a Dark Patch and is a non EX Pokémon so it’s safe from Pitch Black Spear on your bench. Its recharging feature allows me to prolong this concept of constantly using AZ to deny key prizes my opponent is looking to take with their attacks. If you put your opponent in a tough position by constantly using AZ to deny prizes and they’ve burnt out a majority of their Dark Patch and Double Colorless in order to attack, you’ll notice a big swing of momentum dropping form their field towards the end of the game. This further supports why I think Hypnotoxic Laser can be so strong in the mirror match as it’ll help you bleed prizes and Energy from your opponent without taking up the attack for your turn.

Once you’ve established appropriate attackers, you’ll want to attack with them in situations where you’ll get their highest value. Many players find themselves confused as to who to attack with and when. The easiest way to break this down in game, is to think about an ideal route for you to take your 6 prizes while factoring in the variables that aren’t on board yet. These usually include opposing Yveltal-EX, Yveltal BKT, Gallade, Dark Patch, N, AZ, and Double Colorless Energy. A solid majority of the time you want to be attacking with Pitch Black Spear and getting the 60 damage bench poke off of it. If you’re attacking against an opposing Yveltal BKT you’ll want to be the first one to start exchanging damage on each other. These are the cases when you’ll want to hold your Hypnotoxic Laser, Fighting Fury Belt/Silent Lab, Muscle/Silent Lab, or Reverse Valley boosts against them as they’ll be under the impression that you are looking to 3HKO him instead of 2. Doing this may even influence them to drop a Double Colorless Energy on their Yveltal BKT meaning you get an extra card from them when taking the surprise 2HKO. The most mistake making attacker in the deck, Yveltal-EX can take some time to get used to. If you’re attacking with Yveltal-EX’s Evil Ball, you’ll want to ask yourself the following questions:

Is Yveltal-EX going to be KO’d by their Yveltal-EX if I Evil Ball?

If so, how are they establishing that Yveltal-EX and are they over-dedicating to it?

Do they play a Startling Megaphone for my Fighting Fury Belt?

Will the Fighting Fury Belt be negated later on by an Yveltal BKT and will he KO’d the following turn if it is?

After asking yourself these questions and finding your answer for the current gamestate, using Y Cyclone may be the most ideal scenario to avoid a OHKO and setup your future attackers.

Using Gallade in the mirror match is fairly straight forward. I like to save him for a Lysandre KO against a Darkrai-EX or Shaymin-EX in order to establish a solid prize lead without fearing a revenge OHKO. Next I try to use him to deal 110 damage on either Yveltal BKT or Yveltal-EX so I can KO them on the bench with Night Spear or Pitch Black Spear respectively. Some of you may be thinking, “What!?! Night Spear?” Yes, Darkrai-EX is a decent attacker in the mirror match if your opponent missed their Gallade and you can take easy KO’s from Jirachi-EX or Shaymin-EX (Muscle Band) with him if you set up the scenario properly.

Seismitoad-EX/Crobat 50/50

Seismitoad-EX/Crobat is an awkward matchup where you’ll need to draw well and get to your energy in time without being N’d into a dead hand full of items. When you play against Seismitoad-EX/Crobat you’ll want to use as many items as you can on your first turn. Getting a turn 1 Maxie’s Hidden Ball Trick on Archeops is the best start you can have in this matchup but it doesn’t completely seal the game away. You’ll want to use your opening Ultra Ball to ensure you have AZ, Keldeo-EX, and Darkrai-EX not prized. These are critical towards seeing success in this matchup. You also might have the opportunity to trap a Zubat PLS active with your Silent Lab so look to make this play when you are certain you’ll be able to replace it in the future. Next up you’ll want to use Yveltal-EX and Yveltal BKT in succession to work on taking KO’s against their Pokémon-EX. Evil Ball is particularly strong here as most lists have no option to OHKO Yveltal-EX if you play around Dedenne and Manectric-EX properly. Luckily, they need to work hard to KO the 1st Yveltal-EX and you have some time to establish your 2nd before they finish the game. Keldeo-EX and Darkrai-EX can be used in combination to clear Hypnotoxic Laser poison but I try to use it for a more important purpose and that’s prize denial. Constantly swapping out your active Pokémon with a different one and clearing it off the bench with Parallel City is frustrating for Seismitoad decks to deal with. Using this strategy allows you to drop their Quaking Punches by 20 damage which can stack up overtime. While there are so many ways for this match up to play into your favor, the heavy item count in Yveltal lists can be your downfall. Often times I’ll lose or tie this matchup in tournament just to pure dead draws off an unfortunate N or Professor Juniper so if you can’t win just cause your hand is dead, there’s really not much you could in the situation. The only true way to improve this match up significantly is to include a copy of Pokémon Ranger in your list but that’s not ideal for this complete meta.

Rainbow Road 30/70

This matchup sucks for Yveltal. Xerneas BKT is incredibly hard to OHKO and working 2HKOs on it just isn’t ideal. The best start you can have against this deck is to stick a Silent Lab on them after hitting a turn 1 Ghetsis. I try to get an Yveltal BKT and active ASAP and look to Lysandre a bench Pokémon-EX to trap it active. Gallade BKT is the best attacker for this matchup as it can force a 1 for 1 prize trade with Xerneas but it’s tough to string back to back Gallade against the pressure they’re applying. Ideally, I only want to attack with Darkrai-EX and Yveltal-EX in this matchup when I have a Parallel City on deck as you can try and force them to attempt a 2HKO or 3HKO against you. I’ve tried to make intricate numbers off of Night Spear against benched Xerneas as you can benefit from it ignoring resistance upon hitting meaning you’ll need to deal 110 damage to them once it’s active which is manageable depending if your list plays Muscle Band, Fighting Fury Belt, or Hypnotoxic Laser. While Parallel City is strong in this matchup it doesn’t completely win you the game as they can recoup their bench with ease. I’ve tried including a few Enhanced Hammer in my lists to improve this matchup but it had little to no benefit if your opponent conserves their Double Colorless Energy properly. Finally, I’ll say N and Parallel City is the best way to try to mount comebacks against this deck as the best you can do is hope that they get a dead hand and the Parallel City sticks until you can close out the game.

M Rayquaza-EX 40/60

I believe this matchup is dependent on who goes first and if that player is able to hit a turn 1 Ghetsis. If the Yveltal deck is the one that goes first, hits a Ghetsis, and sticks a Silent Lab it more than likely won the game. While this matchup is tough due to the string of Hex Maniac and OHKOs it’s much easier to deal with than Rainbow Road which plays in a similar way. The reason being Yveltal BKT is a much stronger attacker in this matchup than it is against Rainbow Road. I usually aim to get him first and get him active ASAP as he can control their Float Stone and Spirit Link. He’s incredibly important in taking a prize lead against M Rayquaza-EX as their bench will always be full of Pokémon-EX regardless if Parallel City or Skyfield is in play. I try to use Pitch Black Spear to target down any benched Rayquaza-EX or M Rayquaza-EX with energy on it as they’ll more than likely be active in a turn or 2 once your opponent can break the lock. Dealing damage to them and not benched setup Pokémon allow you to eliminate them as threats in the future with Gallade or Yveltal-EX. Unlike with Rainbow Road, Enhanced hammer can set them quite a bit as your opponents’ will more than likely attach their Double Colorless Energy during their early turns in order to get the combo pieces they need. I’ve also considered adding Umbreon-EX for this matchup but I’m unsure how many M Rayquaza-EX decks I’ll actually play against in the tournament. His numbers are perfect to play if you include Muscle Band in your list as an Yveltal-EX can trade an Evil Ball against a M Rayquaza-EX for 120 damage and the following turn you can use a Dark Patch, Double Colorless Energy, and Muscle Band to take 4 prizes against their M Rayquaza with End Game. I tend to follow this turn up with an N and Parallel City which all but closes out the game. Lastly, building up a gigantic Fighting Fury Belted Yveltal-EX, dropping a Parallel City down, and playing N is the best route you can have to mounting a comeback against them if they’re down to 2 or 3 prizes.

Raikou/Eels 40/60

While Raikou/Eels may have type advantage on you, this matchup is relatively easy to control if you’re able to establish an Archeops or Gallade. Since this isn’t always guaranteed, I put this matchup as 40/60 as they can take over the game if you miss. Yveltal BKT is essentially useless in this matchup unless your opponent benches a Keldeo-EX which isn’t always going to happen. I try to use Darkrai-EX and Yveltal-EX to take KO’s on Raikou or benched Eeletrik until I can establish one of my Maxie’s targets. Almost every list is now playing a copy of Mewtwo-EX so I think getting the Archeops online first is more important than the Gallade. If Archeops is prized then work towards a Gallade and try to take knockouts against anything with Energy on it. Parallel City can punish opponent who like to fill up their bench in early turns so you can limit down their attackers or Eels if until they’re able to fetch a Rough Seas and Super Rod. I tend to hold Silent Lab in my hand until I’m able to establish OHKO’s against Raikou when I have to break their ability. Finally, if you’re taking too long to get a Maxie’s Pokémon in play you’ll want to scoop the game after your opponent benches their Mewtwo-EX, 2 Eelektrik, and has 2 Raikou established with Energy.

Trevenant BREAK 50/50

Trevenant BREAK is an interesting matchup as type advantage would normally completely swing a matchup in your favor but with the help from Bursting Balloon and Wobbuffet, Trevenant BREAK is 50/50. Ideally, you want to open with an Yveltal-EX or Yveltal BKT which can threaten a turn 2 KO against a Trevenant. Gallade and Archeops aren’t awful targets to go for on the opening turn but don’t expect to get much use out of Archeops considering Wally, Wobbuffet, and Ascension get around it. Gallade is ideal to use considering you can stack Supporters or Energy you want to top and continuously influence your draws throughout the course of the game. Yveltal XY is an excellent attacker in this matchup as you can hit them for weakness and recoup past energy that’s been removed through Team Flare Grunt. Darkrai-EX can also serve as a decent attacker in the matchup but since he requires 3 Dark energy to get established attaching to him over the course of 3 turns may be more hindering than useful. You want to only bench Pokémon when they’re absolutely needed on the bench. This is a nice way to prolong the time it takes for your opponent to finish the game. Far too often I see players benching 3 or 4 Pokémon early against Trevenant BREAK only to lose to 5 or 6 turns of Silent Fear. You want to make sure you’re benching each Pokémon, regardless if they’re setup or attacker, with a sound purpose in mind. I wouldn’t just throw down Darkrai-EX on the bench for sake of having Dark Cloak sometime in the future, I’ll bench it when I know I need to retreat now or if I know an N is coming and I’ll need the Dark Cloak over the next 2 turns. Patience is key here. Don’t over bench and don’t attack into Bursting Balloon when it generates no advantage for you other than knocking out a Trevenant in play. You might end up giving your opponent the only out to your Yveltal-EX since they can attack it with a Wobbuffet for a quick KO. Now that we’re past the attackers, let’s discuss the Trainers. Much like the other Item Lock matchups you want to use as many as you can on turn 1. Keep in mind Trevenant’s lock can be broken with Lysandre, use this strategy to stockpile some dead items for future use like playing Lysandre then Battle Compressor into 2 or 3 Dark Patches to make a surprise attacker out of nowhere. Silent Lab is a nice way to control Trevenant once you’ve established a lead against them and they’ll need Shaymin-EX to bail them out of a bad hand. Silent Lab also prevents them from making a critical early play with Team Flare Grunt into Shaymin-EX Set Up allowing them to refuel resources and remove your potential OHKO. Lastly, don’t put down Double Colorless Energy without purpose as almost every list will play Xerosic and Enhanced Hammer and put that energy in the dirt.

Greninja BREAK 90/10 (w/Archeops) 30/70 (without)

There’s not much to this matchup other than establishing an early Archeops before your opponent can make their Greninja or Greninja BREAK. Near you want a gigantic Yveltal-EX to OHKO any Greninja or Greninja BREAK that were able to be established but if you made Archeops this matchup should be quite easy. Some lists play Evosoda and Wally but they’ll need to string these evolutions along while you’re able to establish a huge lead with your attacker and finally OHKO the Greninja they made once it comes active. If you can’t make the Archeops before the point where 2 Greninja BREAK are established just scoop. You’ll end up wasting time and might be forced to tie a set where you can simply win by making 2 Archeops.

Manectric/Garbodor 50/50

Even with Gallade established, M Manectric-EX/Garbodor isn’t a completely free matchup. The latest lists will be playing Tool Drop Trubbish and Mewtwo-EX to counter Gallade so you’ll want to use him properly. The sooner Gallade is online the better but Archeops can contribute to the matchup if you’re able to KO their Trubbish with ease. Yveltal BKT adds a bit of control to the matchup as you can delay the time it takes for them to get M Manectric-EX online but he gets KO’d with ease the following turn. Darkrai-EX is great in this matchup as you can use a Muscle Band and counter stadium to force 2HKOs against their Mega if you have a Lysandre to finish it off. None of your Stadiums do much against their deck other than replace Rough Seas but you’ll want to remain wary of Jolteon-EX as it can sweep your deck if you don’t hit it with Gallade.

Night March 50/50

I wouldn’t expect to see this matchup too many times at Philadelphia but its highly decided by how much you can hold the Night March player down with Ghetsis and Silent Lab. Yveltal BKT is used in this matchup to take a prize lead off of any benched opposing Shaymin-EX your opponent’s may have while knocking out any Joltik or Pumpkaboo that’s active. Yveltal XY allows you to take KOs against their Night Marchers for a single energy attachment so it’s good to use this at least once in the matchup. I try not to use Yveltal-EX at all in this matchup as he’s easily KO’d by Joltik and is worth 2 prizes. Using Darkrai-EX is more ideal as he’s resistance to Pumpkaboo and Mew FCO and he’s able to take knockouts on any benched Joltik. Using Shaymin-EX to Sky Return into a Yveltal BKT is ideal against any opposing Joltik so look for this play or even bait this play off of any Joltiks your opponent may have active. Enhanced Hammer barely helps in this matchup unless your opponent overextends their Double Colorless Energy so adding it doesn’t help too much.

Groudon 50/50

If you find yourself playing against Groudon you’ll just want to rush them down with Pitch Black Spear as soon as possible. Each Groudon list should be playing a copy of Mr.Mime so you’ll need to constantly fish for Silent Lab in order to compensate for its ability. It’s nice to use a combination of Lysandre on Mr.Mime then Fighting Fury Belt, Hypnotoxic Laser, Muscle Band, and Silent Lab to KO him while dealing damage to Groudon. Once Groudon is finally active you’ll want to make an Yveltal-EX to KO it asap with Evil Ball. Please remember to account for Super Potion and Pokémon Center Lady as ways for Groudon to heal themselves.

Common Mistakes

Players of any caliber can make misplays from time to time. Knowing where you made your mistake and how to prevent it from occurring next time will further grow you as a player. Here is a list of common mistakes I see players make with Yveltal:

Using Shaymin-EX Set Up to early and establishing no advantage from it.

Overcommitting to an Yveltal-EX in the mirror match simply to take a KO on the opposing Yveltal-EX with an Evil Ball.

Making a turn 2 Ghetsis play after their opponent has already burned through a majority of items in their deck when it could’ve been beneficial to use during the late game.

Discarding their Maxie’s combo pieces with every first Battle Compressor of the game without realizing how to correctly progress their opening hand.

Dumping too much Dark Energy in their discard pile in the opening turns under the assumption that using Dark Patch to attach them back on is a proper way to establish their board.

Benching Yveltal-EX and Darkrai-EX in matchups they shouldn’t be on board against.

Forgetting use Premonition with Gallade BKT

Fixing these mistakes and knowing how and when to address them can significantly improve your play. Some of the mistakes are fairly vague but they’re like that with the intention of get your gears thinking of how to recognize the scenarios I mentioned without breaking it down into card for card, hand for hand, and matchup for matchup moments.

I think Yveltal has all the tools and tricks needed to turn a decent player into a great one just through experience of piloting it. It constantly challenges the pilots to adapt to a scenario at hand and the resources you have to find the best route to victory. Thanks for taking the time out of your day to read my rundown of the deck and for subscribing to Elite PC. Everyone on the team appreciates your support and we constantly strive to prove ourselves worthy of it.

SOME1SPC was created by Christopher Taporco, Dylan Bryan, Marc Albright, and Russell LaParre with the intention to provide quality competitive content for the Pokemon Trading Card Game. We're a group of friends looking to better ourselves and the community by leveling up our deckbuilding, gameplay, and knowledge.